Though it had thrown his bird companion into conniptions Armando had succeeded in catching and killing a large crow and her chicks. He had been so hungry he'd eaten both feather and bone alike as he plowed through the nest. The babies were surprisingly fatty and after finishing the last one Armando had grown queasy; his empty stomach overwhelmed by the large and greasy meal. Unable to continue he'd reclined on the branch for a good long while staring down the intact mother crow, trying to will himself to eat it too. When at last he'd admitted defeat Armando was left with the task of determining what to do with the rest of his food. This was an unusual problem for him. Even in times of plenty he'd chosen his targets with care and thus rarely had leftovers.

In the end he'd decided to do what dogs did. They buried their food, right? He'd do the same. It wasn't like there was anyone around anyway so it was just a simple precaution. The cold would keep it fresh and the distance between his sleeping place and it would give him some amount of personal security in case someone did come snooping around.

He dug a shallow cache just deep enough to make his belly level with the ground if he stood inside it. The crow was wrapped with its head to its chest and its wings around it like a shroud, and then it was buried without ceremony. Once that was done Armando, still queasy, managed to worm his way back up into the oak. There he collapsed on a limb overlooking the cache. His paws hung limply from it and he pinched his eyes shut, trying his hardest not to throw up. Aside from the occasional too-juicy burp he was silent.

Through all of this his titmouse simply watched with obvious disdain. She was of the opinion that he was deserving of the bellyache and though she had yet to admit it out loud she was secretly hoping that in a barfing fit he'd fall from the tree thus getting his just desserts.

WC: 354

Memento was beyond excited, quivering from nose to tail tip from the moment she set off with her mama and daddy Cel to make their way to the spring equinox festival. Her mama said there would be lots of other wolves there, different packs too, those who may become friends and others who might be so nice. The idea of meeting other wolves though excited the child immensely.

Not only that but she was starting to change too now that she was getting a bit older too. Naturally, as all pups do, she was getting taller and filling out femine, light frame. Even more exciting to Memento was the changes in her fur. Browns came in first and seemed to be growing darker by the day in places. That was nice but even better were the splashes of COLOR showing up in her fur. The yellow-orange color wasn’t much overall, spread in various places throughout her coat, but Memento Mori was damned proud of it. She proudly showed Cel, thrilled she was becoming a bit more like him too. His rainbow was so pretty! She had the best parents!

They settled to rest after coming into boreas, her mama dozing off… but Meme couldn’t remain still. Her inquisitive mind had her slipping away from Philomena’s side and, before she knew it, she was lost.

Meme wasn’t scared though… at least not yet. She was too curious about what the world around her had to offer to worry about if her parents could find her. She couldn’t have gone that far.

So rather than worry about it Memento kept going, ears perked as the maned child took in the world around her. She moved as quietly as she could -- her mama had stressed in the event they got seperated to not make a lot of noise cause a meany predator could come and try and gobble her up! She didn’t want to get gobbled up, or have someone like that mean big teeth guy come try and take her away. She’d be smart and make sure she’d be safe!

Curiosity got the better of her when she noticed the fresh mound of dirt turned beneath the oak. She looked around, twitching her ears cautiously as she sniffed for anything that might be dangerous. There was a smell she didn't recognize but she didn’t see anything so it was okay, right?

Meme came out quickly from the more condensed foliage to the open and made her way over to it. She looked around again and then back at the dirt. Why did someone bury something and leave it? She began sniffing around, finding one of the dark feathers of the crow. It stuck to her nose, only freed once the child gave an adorable squeaking sneeze and fell back on her rump.

“Acheeee!!”

WC :: 477

With time and a nap Armando improved significantly. It just took time for the fatty chicks to settle into his belly, much to his bird's disappointment. Every time he let loose a juicy burp she would lean forward on her own perch to see if he was getting what he deserved. Each time he kept his meal down she would fluff her feathers and sink back into her seat, clearly displeased which only served to strengthen his resolve. He would not be sick for no other reason than to spite her for wishing him ill.

A sneeze startled him awake and very nearly caused him to lose his grip on the branch. After windmilling his tail and flailing around a bit, Armando managed to regain his balance. The cause of the fright was none other than a would be thief nosing around his stash. He squinted down at the pup and then quickly shuffled down the branch to where he knew a couple acorns were wedged. Armando freed one and chucked it at the pup's head. "Oi! Beasty!" He freed and threw another. "Shoo!" He made an underhanded waving motion as though trying to scare off a stray cat and then, after grabbing a few more acorns, clambered down a couple branches intent on getting close enough to improve his aim but not so close she could jump up and get him.

Armando held up another acorn so she could see it. "You better just move along missy or I'll give you a lump right here," he tapped his forehead with the acorn, "So big squirrels will wonder what nut's buried there." And he meant it too. Though he was full right now he would be hungry soon enough and who knew when his next meal would be. He needed that crow and he was willing to fight for it.

WC: 314

OOC: idk how she'll react, but if it's IC for her and you want to, I'm okay with her grabbing him by the tail and pulling him out of the tree.